Deepfake phone scams hit millions of Americans as AI clones voices and scammers outpace mobile network protections
- One in four Americans report receiving deepfake voice calls in twelve months
- Spam calls are increasing rapidly, averaging nearly ten unwanted calls weekly
- AI allows scammers to clone voices with minimal effort now
New research has raised serious concerns about the increase in deepfake voice fraud, as more consumers report encountering suspicious calls that imitate familiar voices.
A new survey of over 12,000 consumers by Hiya across the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, and Spain suggests that these incidents are no longer rare or isolated.
The report found one in four Americans received a deepfake voice call during the past twelve months, and another 24% said they are unsure whether they could reliably distinguish between an artificial voice and a real person during a phone call.
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Spam calls continue to expand
The report argues that the growing availability of generative AI tools has accelerated what it calls the “weaponization of AI.”
“Scammers are weaponizing AI to clone voices and steal from vulnerable people, and the bad guys are simply moving faster than legacy network defenses. We cannot expect everyday people to outsmart artificial intelligence on their own,” said Alex Algard, CEO & Founder of Hiya.
“We are in an arms race where scammers are using AI as a weapon, which means operators have to use AI as a shield.”
Scammers now imitate voices with far less effort than before, and these deepfake impersonation attempts often involve relatives or trusted contacts.
This can lead to financial fraud or identity theft when victims believe they are responding to a legitimate request.
American respondents reported receiving an average of 9.9 unwanted calls every week, which amounts to more than 500 calls each year.
These calls target seniors (55+), who lose an average of $1,298, three times more than what younger adults lose – with the volume of this scam has been rising at a compound annual rate of 16% since 2023.
About 48% of Americans say spam calls are worsening, outnumbering those who report improvement by roughly three to one.
The trend appears across multiple countries included in the survey. Consumers across the six markets reported receiving an average of 7.4 unwanted calls weekly.
French respondents reported the highest volume of unwanted calls, while British respondents reported the highest financial losses among scam victims.
In all of this, what are the telecom operators doing about it? This is the anchor question consumers have been asking.
When asked who is winning the ongoing struggle between carriers and scammers, respondents chose scammers by nearly two to one.
This perception may also affect customer loyalty. Around 38% of users say they are likely to switch providers if they feel their current carrier cannot protect them.
Many users (72%) are now calling for stricter government rules requiring telecom companies to respond to such AI-driven scams.
Some respondents also believe carriers should share responsibility for scam losses originating on their networks.
About 67% of users support some level of financial liability, while 55% favor zero-liability protections similar to those used by credit card companies.
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